Mining Pools for ASICS

[rangedriver]

I was just wondering what kind of mining methods are best for the new ASIC miners?

I was thinking about joining a pool such as BTCGuild, but would that be necessary/advisable? Or would solo mining be better?

Also, if I joined a pool and my miner's hashing rate was fast, what kind of payment method would be best? I have heard some payment methods are uniform, but others reward faster miners accordingly.

Which is which?

Thankyou in advance. Any help appreciated!

[TheRedPill]

You will definitely want to join a pool if you have a lot of hashpower. How much do you/are you going to have? Mining solo isn't going to get you very far anymore finding a block and pools pay consistently. BTCGuild is good, but I've been on BitMinter lately because they have lower fees, which is something else you want to look at.

Check out this link:
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Comparison_of_mining_pools

[rangedriver]

Thanks for tips about the pools. My hashing power is going to be around 400GH/s max.  My main concern is getting the payment method right as I'm still learning. I've heard about PPS and PPLNS and others. Do these methods mean a proportional reward relative to my hashing power? I don't want to be in a situation where I have lots of hashing power but only getting a small reward. (If that makes any sense.)

[TheRedPill]

You'll probably want PPLNS then, as it tends to pay out more in the long run and is better for dedicated mining.

[rangedriver]

Aha okay thanks. Sounds good!